Jacco van Beek
Blender

Blender an open source 3D modeling and animation package. It is the greatest thing since sliced bread because:

1. Cost: Free! Compare that to the competition...
2. Restrictions: Unlimited! Personal or commercial projects, no problem! No watermarks, no greyed out features...
3. Powerful: Huge Feature Set; In the hands of a skilled artist, this is a tool capable of professional quality work!
4. Transferable: If you are just getting into 3D, free is a great place to start, and all the concepts and techniques are transferrable to other graphics packages.
5. Popularity: Blender has a huge following, with a very friendly online community. There are lots of user created free tutorials, model and material archives, and helpful people in chat forums to answer questions if you are stuck.
6. Size: Currently below 25 MB to download. Throw it on a flash drive and take it anywhere!
7. Great Origin: Like me, it comes from a Dutch background! And who doesn't like the Dutch?

 

I have taught blender workshops for programs like the SHAD Valley camp at Carleton University and the Graphics Arts Club at Lisgar High School for a few years.